ERIC Number: ED151989
Record Type: RIE
Publication Date: 1978-Mar
Pages: 23
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
School Board Elections and Board Responsiveness: A Case Study of the Effects of Electoral Conflict and Competition for Office.
Adkison, Judith
This case study examined the recent history of a southwestern school district of approximately 80,000 students and its 1977 school board election. The results of the study provide evidence supporting the theory linking the complexity of a school district with electoral competition and with open conflict on the board and between the board and the superintendent. The two board members elected in 1977 formed a majority with the dissident board member, and the superintendent resigned as the board made policy changes. Conflict and competition helped the winning candidates resist socialization pressures and maintain an independent posture, since they believed that they had a mandate from the entire community, not just from specific constituencies. It appears that the relationships identified in political theory may not necessarily represent democratic influence on policy formation at the school board level. (Author)
Publication Type: Speeches/Meeting Papers
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: N/A
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Note: Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association (Toronto, Ontario, March 27-31, 1978)